Cup host city to appeal cancellation of Sunday date at Maracana stadium.

Maracana stadium is one of 12 set to host matches during the 2014 World Cup in Brazil.

By:The Associated Press, Published on Thu May 30 2013

RIO DE JANEIRO—The government of the state of Rio de Janeiro says a judge has cancelled Brazil’s soccer friendly against England scheduled for Sunday at Rio de Janeiro’s Maracana stadium.

The state government says in an emailed statement it will appeal the cancellation decided Thursday by Judge Adriana Costa dos Santos.

Local media reports say the judge cancelled the game because the stadium doesn’t meet necessary safety standards. But the government says in the statement that the stadium meets all the safety standards required. It says that because of a “bureaucratic error” the report proving that the stadium is safe wasn’t delivered to the proper authorities.

The cancellation would be a blow to Brazil and its plan to organize the Confederations Cup — which opens June 15 — and raise questions about the South American nation’s ability to organize next year’s World Cup and the 2016 Rio de Janeiro Olympics.

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